Album Review

The sign of quality in a Cave In record is whether its title refers to death by cave-in or not. Beyond Hypothermia and Until Your Heart Stops were brilliantly crushing albums that expanded the boundaries of metal and hardcore, bringing in radical rhythmic shifts, elements of psychedelia and much more. Later records journeyed into the cosmos, adorned with titles like Jupiter, Antenna, and Planets of Old, and were substantially less heavy, and less rewarding, than the band's earliest work. White Silence seems to return to the cave-in/snowed-in theme, and while it's not a full-on metal assault in the vein of Beyond and Until, it's still a terrific record. The music runs the gamut from the almost Deftones-ish "Sing My Loves," which never feels eight minutes long, to the grinding hardcore of "Vicious Circles," one of the hardest, most aggressive songs the band has ever recorded. "Centered" is a jagged burst of noise-rock, while "Summit Fever" combines distorted vocals with a huge, almost classic rock riff. The album concludes with three pastoral, indie friendly, acoustic-guitar-dominated songs in a row. Cave In has always been a multifaceted band, but their stylistic range has never been as thoroughly explored as it is on White Silence.

Customer Reviews

No Thanks.

by
tech_metal

Maybe it will grow on me, but I prefer any of their other albums over this.

Comeback of the Millenium...

by
BrendanDavin

It's nice to see Cave In back to the sound they do best. Jupiter will always be there best in my opinion, but this is definitely right up with it. Nicely done guys, glad to have you back.

Ouch.

by
OtherJesus

The title says it all. This sounds like noise. Literally. I hear no production value and the songs sound like any noise metal band I've already heard before 10 times 10 years ago. Go back, listen to "Inspire" and then give pop rock another shot. You gave up too easily.

Biography

Formed: 1995 in Methuen, MA

Genre: Rock

Years Active: '90s, '00s, '10s

Alt metal outfit Cave In originated in 1995, in Methuen, MA, when Stephen Brodsky and Jay Frechette got the idea to start a band in the vein of some of their favorites: Failure, Unwound, Snapcase, etc. With Brodsky on guitar and Frechette's vocals, they added bassist Justin Matthes, guitarist Adam McGrath, and drummer John-Robert Conners, and recorded some early demos. Split 7"s with Gambit, Piebald, and Early Grace followed before Cave In got a chance for its own, courtesy of Hydra Head, which appeared...